“If a young man tells his date how handsome, smart and successful he is – that’s advertising. If the young man tells his date she’s intelligent, looks lovely, and is a great conversationalist, he’s saying the right things to the right person and that’s marketing. If someone else tells the young woman how handsome, smart and successful her date is – that’s PR.”– S. H. Simmons

The above quote illustrates a truism in business: perception is everything. Why? For one, your marketing efforts won’t matter much if consumers have a negative perception of your business. For subscription businesses, rising above the noise requires a comprehensive Public Relations strategy to cover launches, paywall announcements, pricing changes and event promotions. A successful public relations strategy is necessary to establish the story and get the largest amount of eyeballs focused on you. Be sure to consider these 30 tips as you embark on your public relations journey:

Strategic Preparation 

1. Establish a PR Point Person: Dedicate an internal public relations “Point Person” to coordinate all of your efforts. Even if you are using an agency to do the heavy lifting of copywriting and pitching the stories, designate that all PR efforts are to run through this person.
2. Give them a dedicated phone: Set up an office or cell phone line so your Point Person can pitch stories and answer questions or requests. A cell phone may be more ideal because requests can be answered outside the office at any time of the day or night. This dedicated phone number should be added to your Contact Us page as the primary Media Contact. The Point Person should also update all online bios (including LinkedIn) to reflect this role, even if these are additional duties in addition to their previously established role.
3. Build a media database: A media database of reporters who cover your industry is ground zero for your pitch efforts. There are many vendors that offer database software, or you could start with a simple spreadsheet, though things may get complicated very fast. Start by conducting a Google search of terms relevant to your industry. Find reporters who are “on the beat” and enter their contact information into your database. Do the same for trade publications and news outlets you hope to target.
4. Familiarize with CMS: Teach your point person how to use your Content Management System, namely how to create new pages and post press releases directly to your corporate web site. The ability to create vanity URLs for each release for SEO purposes is a plus as well.
5. Maintain a close relationship with Investor Relations: If your company is public or considering an IPO, the Point Person will maintain a close relationship with Investor Relations and have on-hand a list of written guidelines for interacting with the general public. This is due to the legal ramifications that come with being a publicly traded company.
6. Release news to affiliates first: Establish a rapport and process between the Point Person and your affiliate marketing manager to determine the procedure of releasing hot news to your affiliates before it hits the press.
7. SEO Keyword List: Create a list of pertinent keywords to always include in your press releases and keep it on hand for easy access and reference.

Finding Public Relations Opportunities 

8. Google Alerts: These are a primary and easy way to track news articles that mention keywords relevant to your business and industry. They will provide you with an idea of which publications and journalists are “on the beat” for your future pitches.
9. Social Media: Monitor social media #hashtags and search terms to create connections. Twitter, for all its faults, is excellent for breaking news right as it happens and is a natural fit for journalists and others who follow the news. 
10. Opportunities Calendar: Create a calendar of annual PR opportunities. Include promos, financial news, launches, reports, and industry conferences, among others.
11. News Hooks: Use your story monitoring to find the places where you can insert your brand into the conversation. Are there opportunities out there in the news for you to offer your opinion and expertise? A good example is how Subscription Insider has closely aligned itself with news about the technological changes around credit card processing and the movement to EMV, “chip” card technology. While this topic isn’t about subscriptions per se, most subscription businesses use some form of recurring revenue payment processing, so it is very relevant to our business.
12. Use Stats: Survey your subscribers and target market to obtain benchmark statistics. This will give you credibility and establish you as a go-to resource for your market data as you go about pitching stories. Reporters like easy information because it means less digging around to get the background on a story. Consider publishing a “Benchmark Report” once a year to put all your data in one location and further establish your credentials as a SME.
13. Rankings: Reports that rank topics in your target market tend to get picked up. Publish articles that rank things like bestsellers, hot items, favorites, the most despised, pet peeves, tips, factoids, myths, the best, etc.
14. Awards and Competitions: Establishing your own “awards” that recognize players in your target market is an easy way to build awareness of your brand.
15. Enter Awards and Competitions: In the same vein, entering contests held by others is a great way to get out there. Publicize that you are “nominated” even if you simply entered and have no chance of winning.

Crafting a Press Release 

16. Create a Sample Press Release: Before you work on any “real” press releases, create a sample release in order to establish your writing and editing process and to get the overall format approved.  
17. Determine SEO Keywords: Use your previously established SEO keyword list and choose words to weave into the copy that pertain to the subject and targeted audience of the release.
18. Craft Targeted Headlines: You may need separate targeted headlines for pitching different niche outlets. Keep the headline to around 100 characters.
19. First Paragraph: The beginning of your release must include a link to your site and contain enough details for the reader to understand the story without reading further.
20. Remainder of Copy: The entire release must be at least 300 words. Include front and center, the contact information for your Point Person. Include a one-paragraph boilerplate that describes the mission of your business and contains your website url and contact information.
21. Images: Images that accompany your release should be of humans or action shots, but not of company logos. These should be no larger than 80×80 pixels.
22. Permission: Be sure to obtain permission from legal or executives on your final wording.

Distributing a Press Release 

23. Distribution List: Select a distribution service for releases to be broadcast to the wider world at large. The service should be able to reach Google News and other similar destinations. You only need to use one wire service because free services generally don’t have worthwhile online reach.
24. Contact Database: Set up an internal contact database for PR, blog, email and social media contacts.
25. Press List: Build a press list of journalists who regularly cover your industry. Making connections here will prove invaluable to your overall efforts.
26. Twitter/Blogger/Podcast List: Track and pitch to influential internet broadcasters who routinely talk about your brand or target market.
27. Social Media Groups: Your Point Person should join relevant LinkedIn, Facebook, and other social media platform groups.
28. Distribute Press Release:
1. Post to your site using a vanity URL and dedicated landing page if desired.
2. Broadcast on a wire service.
3. Send to your affiliate list.
4. Post link to the release on all social media channels.
5. Have executives post notes about the release on their own social media accounts. Other employees can do this too.
6. Send a special email blast to your existing customer list if the news is worthy of it.
7. Email journalists you know well or who work for niche media outlets with personal messages.

Measuring Results

29. Analytics: Ask your analytics department to report on traffic relevant to your releases, including SEO keywords, social media traffic and traffic specific to your landing pages.
30. Track “pick ups”: For each release, track which publications picked it up, did a story, or posted it to social media. Thank them for doing so and create a relationship that will help you get traction on further releases. 

Insider Take

Effective public relations strategy requires vigilance through attention to your market. The more attentive you are to who and what publications are covering your market, the better positioned you will be to cultivate relationships and get your name in the news. While the Subscription Economy still has much potential for growth, the noise is growing louder by the day as more and more businesses realize the “old-but-new” benefits of the subscription business model. Following a comprehensive strategy like this will help you get yourself in front of as many eyeballs as possible, and your business will be better for it!